KOCKENGEN, Netherlands (AP) — A split second of flight, then a landing on the sand — or a splashdown in a canal.

That’s the thrill of the Dutch sport of “fierljeppen” — far leaping — which sees athletes hoist themselves up and over canals on slender carbon poles in the Netherlands countryside.

“The moment you are at the top of the pole and you get to jump (off) of the pole, in that small moment you get to fly and that’s just really nice to experience,” 25-year-old athlete Bas van Leeuwen said as jumpers gathered for a competition in a village near Utrecht this week.

‘Not really that dangerous’

Athletes run to a carbon pole positioned with one end in the canal and tilted toward the bank. They run along a jetty to the pole, grab on and try to shin up the pole as fast as possible before l

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